By the end of 2021, it was estimated U.S. smartphone owners will spend $15.4 billion (yep, with a “b”) on phone repairs. That’s why ZAGG, which specializes in mobile device accessories, partnered with Dynata, a data and survey platform, to uncover the craziest ways people have damaged their mobile devices. Here are some of the wildest responses from the survey of over 1,000 smartphone owners:
· “Dropped into an autopsy deceased cavity and had liquid damage”
· “I lost it in the snow for 5 days”
· “Dropped it in my dog’s feeding dish and he swallowed it”
· “I dropped one on a pogo stick”
· “I left it in the fridge”
· “Dropped it in a bathtub then microwaved to dry”
The survey also uncovered that 50% of the smartphone owners who participated had damaged their phone in the last 12 months, and 35% had a damaged phone while surveyed. Key points of the report:
° 50% of adult US smartphone owners have damaged their phone in the last 12 months.
° Of those who damaged their phone in the past 12 months, 70% did so by dropping them.
° When their phones were damaged, they were often using protective accessories already, with 67% using a case and 57% using screen protection.
° There’s a strong inverse correlation between age and smartphone damage. Individuals between 18-39 are particularly likely to have damaged a phone or have a currently damaged phot.
° A similarly young age range, 25-39, is the most likely to currently own protective accessories.
